I would say I mostly agree with you. I do understand man’s natural state and we are back in the madness stage. I also understand the military industrial complex that Ike warned us about spent 40 years in the military. Where I may disagree with you is about Putin. I understand what Putin wants/wanted and why he invaded but the thing is whether Putin likes it or not Ukraine is a sovereign nation and parts were given to Ukraine by Lenin the Russian leader at the time and the fact that Putin doesn’t agree with that and he told us he did t want Ukraine joining NATO or EU doesn’t matter. Similar arguments were made by hitler about lands he believed belonged to Germany. If Putin said all these lands once were part of USSR would that be justification for him to invade all those countries. Can he say he wants Alaska back and we say no he is justified in invading. Can mexiconsay they want kali, Texas….. back and be justified in invading. Most of Europe’s and the world’s countries borders are all relatively new so do we disregard them because someone says they don’t agree with them. As in most wars there may be a winner but there are for more losers on both sides
I never understood Ike’s reference to the Military Industrial Complex until after we had left Vietnam. It dawned on me that we were lending the South Vietnamese the money to purchase arms from us. Since then I’ve seen the MIC skulking in every shadow and behind every shrub.
As far as Putin wanting Ukraine back, of course he does. When Ukraine split off an awful lot of industrial and agricultural capacity went with them. Plus he wants his land bridge to Crimea.
As far as the areas Hitler annexed, Alsace-Lorraine has been fought over since before Germany was a unified nation and part of Czechoslovakia had been populated by German speaking people for some time. But they were just excuses for Hitler’s desire to punish Europe for Versailles.
As for Poland, under the Treaty of Versailles, a travesty, Poland was given West Prussia, Poznan, and Upper Silesia. Those lands were a rallying cry for the people who were still upset about how the 1st WW ended.
Mexico has already invaded California and seemingly won. Can’t deny that California isn’t as politically corrupt as any Mexican state. Alaska was a straight up land purchase. We paid for it out of the treasury, no blood involved.
Since, as you say, most national borders are relatively new why can’t the breakaway Donbass areas be allowed to go their way? They were trying to break off before Putin got militarily involved. Ukraine didn’t want to let them go. The Deep State had other ideas.
I actually have the notion China Joe was installed to prod Putin into the actions he has taken. Remember Joe’s remark that as long as Russia kept a minimal incursion into Ukraine, he was okay with it?